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Ando J, Kawamoto T. Genetic and Environmental Structure of Altruism Characterized by Recipients in Relation to Personality. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2021; 57:medicina57060593. [PMID: 34201317 PMCID: PMC8228475 DOI: 10.3390/medicina57060593] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2021] [Revised: 05/31/2021] [Accepted: 06/02/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Altruism is a form of prosocial behavior with the goal of increasing the fitness of another individual as a recipient while reducing the fitness of the actor. Although there are many studies on its heterogeneity, only a few behavioral genetic studies have been conducted to examine different recipient types: family members favored by kin selection, the dynamic network of friends and acquaintances as direct reciprocity, and strangers as indirect reciprocity. Materials and Methods: This study investigated the genetic and environmental structure of altruism with reference to recipient types measured by the self-report altruism scale distinguished by the recipient (the SRAS-DR) and examine the relationship to personality dimensions measured by the NEO-FFI with a sample of 461 adult Japanese twin pairs. Results: The present study shows that there is a single common factor of altruism: additive genetic effects explain 51% of altruism without a shared environmental contribution. The genetic contribution of this single common factor is explained by the genetic factors of neuroticism (N), extraversion (E), openness to experience (O), and conscientiousness (C), as well as a common genetic factor specific to altruism. Only altruism toward strangers is affected by shared environmental factors. Conclusions: Different types of altruistic personality are constructed by specific combinational profiles of general personality traits such as the Big Five as well as a genetic factor specific to altruism in each specific way.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juko Ando
- Faculty of Letters, Keio University, Tokyo 108-8345, Japan
- Correspondence:
| | - Tetsuya Kawamoto
- Faculty of Letters, Kokushikan University, Tokyo 154-8515, Japan;
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Takahashi Y, Pingault JB, Yamagata S, Ando J. Phenotypic and aetiological architecture of depressive symptoms in a Japanese twin sample. Psychol Med 2020; 50:1381-1389. [PMID: 31179952 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291719001326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The phenotypic and aetiological architecture of depression symptomatology has been mostly studied in Western samples. In this study, we conducted a genetically informed factor analysis to elucidate both the phenotypic and aetiological architectures of self-reported depression among a Japanese adult twin sample. METHODS Depressive symptoms assessed by Zung's Self-rating Depression Scale were self-rated by 425 twin pairs (301 monozygotic and 124 dizygotic twin pairs) in a community sample in Japan. RESULTS An exploratory factor analysis extracted three symptom domains representing cognitive, affective and somatic symptomatology. A confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated that a bi-factor solution fitted better than the alternative solutions, implying that depression may be defined as a combination of a single general construct and three factors specific to each of the three symptom domains. A multivariate genetic analysis with the bi-factor solution showed that the general factor was substantially heritable (47%), and that only the affective symptom domain was significantly heritable (29%) among the three specific factors, their remaining variance being explained by non-shared environmental influences. CONCLUSIONS Depression symptomatology appears to be adequately captured by a substantially heritable general factor. The heritability of this factor (47%) in a Japanese adult sample is in line with commonly reported heritability estimates for depression. The three specific factors - cognitive, affective and somatic - are mostly explained by non-shared environmental factors, which include measurement error. The extent to which these specific factors are uniquely associated with correlates of depression when the general factor is accounted for should be investigated in future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yusuke Takahashi
- The Hakubi Center for Advanced Research and Graduate School of Education, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
- Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, London, UK
| | - Jean-Baptiste Pingault
- Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, London, UK
- Social, Genetic & Developmental Psychiatry Centre, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Shinji Yamagata
- Graduate School of Education and Human Development, Nagoya University, Aichi, Japan
| | - Juko Ando
- Faculty of Letters, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan
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Shikishima C, Hiraishi K, Yamagata S, Ando J, Okada M. Genetic Factors of Individual Differences in Decision Making in Economic Behavior: A Japanese Twin Study using the Allais Problem. Front Psychol 2015; 6:1712. [PMID: 26617546 PMCID: PMC4643135 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01712] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2015] [Accepted: 10/23/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Why does decision making differ among individuals? People sometimes make seemingly inconsistent decisions with lower expected (monetary) utility even when objective information of probabilities and reward are provided. It is noteworthy, however, that a certain proportion of people do not provide anomalous responses, choosing the alternatives with higher expected utility, thus appearing to be more “rational.” We investigated the genetic and environmental influences on these types of individual differences in decision making using a classical Allais problem task. Participants were 1,199 Japanese adult twins aged 20–47. Univariate genetic analysis revealed that approximately a third of the Allais problem response variance was explained by genetic factors and the rest by environmental factors unique to individuals and measurement error. The environmental factor shared between families did not contribute to the variance. Subsequent multivariate genetic analysis clarified that decision making using the expected utility theory was associated with general intelligence and that the association was largely mediated by the same genetic factor. We approach the mechanism underlying two types of “rational” decision making from the perspective of genetic correlations with cognitive abilities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chizuru Shikishima
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Liberal Arts, Teikyo University Tokyo, Japan
| | - Kai Hiraishi
- Faculty of Letters, Keio University Tokyo, Japan
| | - Shinji Yamagata
- Faculty of Arts and Science, Kyushu University Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Juko Ando
- Faculty of Letters, Keio University Tokyo, Japan
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Kovas Y, Garon-Carrier G, Boivin M, Petrill SA, Plomin R, Malykh SB, Spinath F, Murayama K, Ando J, Bogdanova OY, Brendgen M, Dionne G, Forget-Dubois N, Galajinsky EV, Gottschling J, Guay F, Lemelin JP, Logan JAR, Yamagata S, Shikishima C, Spinath B, Thompson LA, Tikhomirova TN, Tosto MG, Tremblay R, Vitaro F. Why children differ in motivation to learn: Insights from over 13,000 twins from 6 countries. PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2015; 80:51-63. [PMID: 26052174 PMCID: PMC4372262 DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2015.02.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2014] [Revised: 01/27/2015] [Accepted: 02/04/2015] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Genes rather than environment contribute to family resemblance in academic motivation. Environmental influences stemmed entirely from individual specific experiences. Attending same vs. different classes did not affect twin similarity in motivation. Results are similar across ages, countries and academic subjects.
Little is known about why people differ in their levels of academic motivation. This study explored the etiology of individual differences in enjoyment and self-perceived ability for several school subjects in nearly 13,000 twins aged 9–16 from 6 countries. The results showed a striking consistency across ages, school subjects, and cultures. Contrary to common belief, enjoyment of learning and children’s perceptions of their competence were no less heritable than cognitive ability. Genetic factors explained approximately 40% of the variance and all of the observed twins’ similarity in academic motivation. Shared environmental factors, such as home or classroom, did not contribute to the twin’s similarity in academic motivation. Environmental influences stemmed entirely from individual specific experiences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yulia Kovas
- Laboratory for Cognitive Investigations and Behavioral Genetics, Tomsk State University, Russia ; Goldsmiths, University of London, London, UK ; King's College London, MRC Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, UK ; Psychological Institute, Russian Academy of Education, Moscow, Russia
| | | | - Michel Boivin
- Université Laval, Québec, Canada ; Tomsk State University, Russia
| | | | - Robert Plomin
- King's College London, MRC Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, UK
| | - Sergey B Malykh
- Laboratory for Cognitive Investigations and Behavioral Genetics, Tomsk State University, Russia ; Psychological Institute, Russian Academy of Education, Moscow, Russia
| | - Frank Spinath
- Department of Psychology, Saarland University, Saarbrücken, Germany
| | - Kou Murayama
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
| | | | - Olga Y Bogdanova
- Laboratory for Cognitive Investigations and Behavioral Genetics, Tomsk State University, Russia
| | | | | | | | - Eduard V Galajinsky
- Laboratory for Cognitive Investigations and Behavioral Genetics, Tomsk State University, Russia
| | | | | | - Jean-Pascal Lemelin
- Département de psychoéducation, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Canada
| | - Jessica A R Logan
- Crane Center for Early Child Research and Policy, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - Shinji Yamagata
- National Center for University Entrance Examinations, Tokyo, Japan
| | | | - Birgit Spinath
- Department of Psychology, Heidelberg University, Germany
| | - Lee A Thompson
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA
| | - Tatiana N Tikhomirova
- Laboratory for Cognitive Investigations and Behavioral Genetics, Tomsk State University, Russia ; Psychological Institute, Russian Academy of Education, Moscow, Russia
| | | | - Richard Tremblay
- Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada ; School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Public Health, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland ; Department of Psychology, University of York, UK
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Hiraishi K, Shikishima C, Yamagata S, Ando J. Heritability of decisions and outcomes of public goods games. Front Psychol 2015; 6:373. [PMID: 25954213 PMCID: PMC4406000 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2014] [Accepted: 03/16/2015] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Prosociality is one of the most distinctive features of human beings but there are individual differences in cooperative behavior. Employing the twin method, we examined the heritability of cooperativeness and its outcomes on public goods games using a strategy method. In two experiments (Study 1 and Study 2), twin participants were asked to indicate (1) how much they would contribute to a group when they did not know how much the other group members were contributing, and (2) how much they would contribute if they knew the contributions of others. Overall, the heritability estimates were relatively small for each type of decision, but heritability was greater when participants knew that the others had made larger contributions. Using registered decisions in Study 2, we conducted seven Monte Carlo simulations to examine genetic and environmental influences on the expected game payoffs. For the simulated one-shot game, the heritability estimates were small, comparable to those of game decisions. For the simulated iterated games, we found that the genetic influences first decreased, then increased as the numbers of iterations grew. The implication for the evolution of individual differences in prosociality is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kai Hiraishi
- Faculty of Psychology, Yasuda Women’s UniversityHiroshima, Japan
| | | | - Shinji Yamagata
- Faculty of Arts and Science, Kyushu UniversityFukuoka, Japan
| | - Juko Ando
- Faculty of Letters, Keio UniversityTokyo, Japan
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